New Episode of Road To The NHL Winter Classic™ Debuts Thursday at 5:30 p.m. ET, Encores at 11 p.m. ET Following Flyers-Lightning

STAMFORD, Conn. – December 26, 2018 – NBC Sports presents the 11th installment of the NHL’s signature regular-season game on New Year’s Day, as Brad Marchand and the Boston Bruins face off against Patrick Kane and the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2019 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic® at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Ind., on Jan. 1, 2019, at 1 p.m. ET on NBC.

The 2019 NHL Winter Classic will mark Chicago’s fourth and Boston’s third appearance in the annual New Year’s Day game. The Blackhawks are 0-3-0 all-time in the Winter Classic, with their most recent loss coming against the St. Louis Blues in the 2017 NHL Winter Classic at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Mo. Boston defeated the Philadelphia Flyers, 2-1, at Boston’s Fenway Park in 2010, and lost 5-1 to the Montreal Canadiens in 2016 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.

The Bruins (20-13-4, 44 pts) are 6-4-0 in their last 10 games, with wins coming against Anaheim and Nashville. David Pastrnak paces the team with 23 goals and 47 points, while Marchand ranks first in assists (29) and second in points (41). The Blackhawks (13-20-6, 32 pts) rattled off a season-high three consecutive wins last week before falling to the Florida Panthers, 6-3, on Sunday. Kane leads Chicago in points (44) and ranks tied for first in goals (17) through 39 games.

NBC Sports Chicago’s game day coverage of the NHL Winter Classic will be highlighted by a special one-hour, on-field remote edition of Blackhawks Pregame Live presented by ChevyDrivesChicago.com at 11 a.m. CT, featuring host Pat Boyle, along with analysts Steve Konroyd, Jamal Mayers, Adam Burish, and Patrick Sharp. In addition to a complete game preview, player match-up overviews, and on-field pregame reports, Blackhawks Pregame Live will also feature live coverage of the tailgate festivities with Blackhawks fans, along with scheduled pregame interviews with Blackhawks and NHL executives.

Immediately following the game telecast, fans can look forward to an expanded edition of Blackhawks Postgame Live presented by Hyundai at 2:30 p.m. CT on NBC Sports Chicago, highlighted by live coverage of the post-game press conferences, along with locker room player interviews and much more.

NEW EPISODE OF ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC™ DEBUTS THURSDAY AT 6 P.M. ET, ENCORES AT 11 P.M. ET FOLLOWING FLYERS-LIGHTNING

A new episode of the critically-acclaimed Road To The NHL Winter Classic™ docuseries, which takes viewers inside the dressing rooms and homes of the Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks as they prepare to meet in the Winter Classic on Jan. 1., will debut on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, leading into coverage of Flyers-Lightning on NBCSN. An encore presentation will air at 11 p.m. ET on NBCSN, immediately following coverage of Flyers-Lightning.

FLYERS-LIGHTNING THURSDAY AT 7:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

The Lightning (28-7-2, 58 pts) are 11-0-1 since Nov. 29 and currently own the top record in the Eastern Conference. Tampa Bay defeated Edmonton, 6-3, on Saturday to help push the Lightning’s point streak to 12 games. Nikita Kucherov recorded his first career five-point game in the victory.

The Flyers (15-16-4, 34 pts) defeated the New York Rangers, 3-2, in a shootout on Sunday, and improved to 3-1-0 in their last four games. Giroux leads Philadelphia in points (42).

NBC Sports will deliver coverage of a record 109 regular-season games during the 2018-19 season, highlighted by the debut of “Wednesday Night Hockey” on NBCSN, which will showcase the network’s most diverse schedule since it acquired NHL rights prior to the 2005-06 season, as well as NHL’s current and rising stars. All games will be streamed live on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app to authenticated users via TV Everywhere.

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming platforms for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will provide live streaming coverage of the 2018-19 NHL season via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms.